Envirothon team honored

A team from West Johnston High School showcased the best Community Service Learning Project at this year’s N.C. State Envirothon.

From left are John Peeler, N.C. Envirothon chairman; parent volunteer Lynn Turner; team adviser Melody Lineberger, team members Matthew Cherry, Jeremy Mayer, Faith Turner, Lindsay Barnes and Ashley Turner; and John Langdon, president of the N.C. Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts.
JOHNSTON SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT

A team from West Johnston High School showcased the best Community Service Learning Project at this year’s N.C. State Envirothon.

Team members Lindsay Barnes, Matthew Cherry, Jeremy Mayer, Faith Turner and Ashley Turner have taken part in Envirothon since they were sixth-graders.

“We wanted to give back to the community that has supported us,” Ashley Turner said.

The team built a nature trail around the perimeter of McGee’s Crossroads Middle School. The trail has 15 informational stations marked by horseshoes. (The McGee’s Middle mascot is the mustang.)

The team created a brochure explaining each station, wrote a set of guided notes for students to use while walking the trail and compiled a list of “talking points” for teachers. The documentation supports the state’s science curriculum in grades 6 and 8.

Teachers and staff at McGee’s supported the effort, especially Charlene Bowling, whose art club students painted the horseshoes donated by Wayne and Crystal-Dawn Guin and the horseshoe nails, which were donated by Billy Harris, a local farrier.

The team explained the trail and the supporting documents in presentations to teachers and then again to the Johnston County Beekeepers Association. The aim is to encourage other schools to install nature trails.

The Envirothon Learning Service Project is a voluntary project for middle and high school students who take part in the N.C. Envirothon. The Edmondson Quadrangle 4-H team received a plaque and $100. In addition to winning the Learning Service Project, the team also scored highest in the aquatics section of the competition and placed fifth overall in the state.